Neapolitan Meatballs – (Polpette Alla Napolitana)
This is an old-fashioned recipe. You can leave out the pinoles and currants but if you use them it makes these polpettes special.
Ingredients:
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1/3 cup dried currants (soaked)
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A small loaf of day-old Italian bread with the crust removed
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Some milk to wet the bread
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About 1 lb. of ground beef chuck
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A handful of chopped parsley
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1 finely chopped garlic clove
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Salt and black pepper
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1 beaten egg
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1 cup grated Parmigiana cheese
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1/3 cup pinoles (pine nuts)
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Olive oil for frying
Soak the currants in a little warm water. Soak the bread in the milk. Squeeze out the excess milk, break it apart and put it in a bowl with the beef, parsley and garlic.
Mix it well and add salt and pepper, the egg, cheese, the pinoles and drained currents. Mix this thoroughly with your hands.
Shape the mix into small balls (I use an ice cream scoop to get them the same size) and let them rest for 15 – 20 minutes and then fry in a good amount of olive oil over medium heat in a heavy pan.
Keep rolling them to brown on all sides. Drain and serve with tomato sauce. They’re very good plain too.
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